Someone took one of my chickens!

[Tala]

Quote:
Unless maybe it was a kid who wanted a new pet??


Someone stole 3 of my chicks (3-4 week olds) one time, from their pen. Someone on here suggested that 3 was all they could carry if they didn't think to bring a cage, and that made sense to me. I set the trap regardless, and did rid my neighborhood of 2 cats, but I STILL think that the perp was human because I don't think the cats could have gotten into my chicken tractor and back out again without leaving feathers everywhere.

 

[urbanfarmers]

Chicks: 9-10 week old Partridge Wyandotte Bantams

Snake/Weasel: wouldn't it have to have swallowed the whole chick? That seems like a pretty big chick for a gardener snake/weasel to swallow...those are the only snakes we have around here. I saw no evidence of blood or feathers all over the place...the only feather I saw was from our Rhode Island Red rooster.

Hawk: no way a hawk could have gotten into the coop or the run...unless it could unlock doors and windows.

Coop/Run: both have a roof and are secure on all four sides and the chicken wire is buried 12 inches into the ground. I found no holes cut/torn in the chicken wire, no holes around the base of the run...inside or out. The door to the coop has a sliding lock and the inside window has a hook-type lock and the outside window has a sliding lock. The door to the run has a hook-type lock. So yes, someone/something would have to have had to unlock a door or window, take the chick and then lock it on their/its way out.

I did a lot of research before getting my chickens and found no laws any place that said chickens were not allowed. I spoke to my neighbor and he said he searched and talk to tons of people and nobody could find anything that said chickens were prohibited...as did the other person in our city/county. I even made phone calls to the courthouse to find out about livestock laws in our area. There was a piece on the news a while back about someone having chickens and the city telling them they had to get rid of them but because there were no laws that prohibited having chickens the people were allowed to keep them.

We would love to have game cameras but don't have that kind of money and I don't know anyone who has one we could borrow. The flour won't work because we have dogs and they would disturb the flour we put on the ground. We have a motion sensing light in the back and I left that on tonight...never thought I would have to have it on but now I know better! I do like the idea of signs in our yard/on our property and will be putting them up tomorrow...I will post pictures!

As far as WHO took the chicken, I have an idea! We have some little trouble makers across the street that I have gone to battle with and the son is a known thief. My other idea is the drunk that lives behind us who has been stalking us, our chickens and our neighbors. I will be watching these crazy folks and will make it well known that I will protect my property at all costs!

I'm going to look around again in the morning to see if by chance the chick got out some how and made it through one of the fences that surrounds our yard or to make sure it didn't get out and was killed by our dogs. I still think the cops need to known someone is stealing but my husband is completely against calling the them. OMG this just makes me so freaking mad!!!!!

 

[Tala]

Quote:
I think you need to find out why your husband is SO AGAINST the cops.

It NEVER hurts to make a report and create a paper trail. If chickens start disappearing and you find out who, you could theoretically sue them for the cost of all the missing birds, and use the police reports as evidence. There are many many many uses for having a police report, and if you don't ever need to call it up (it costs what, $5 to get a copy?), so be it, but it's there if you need it.

ETA: and padlock your coop from now on. If the lock is cut it's a dead giveaway that your predator is human

 

[Oven Ready]

I agree - the bird is too big to be taken without leaving a trace.

If there is a way for the chick to sneak out, the others would probably have found that route too, so that seems unlikely.

It does, sadly, sound like a human. The flour/talc/wet sand/soft dirt might still work OK, yes the dogs would leave their prints in it but a human footprint would be unmistakable even with the dogs.

You can get all CSI by wiping the handle to the coop with oil (veg is probably best) and powdering the handle, then seeing if it's been smudged in the morning - as long as the dogs don't lick it off !!!

I don't know what making a police report is like in the USA, but I wouldn't think the police would come round for one chick that you have no evidence that it was a person that took it. But if you phone them and explain, perhaps they would keep your call on file. It might be important later.

Sounds like padlocks may be a wise investment.

 

[joebryant]

It might be some young boys looking for mischief to get into and something to play with. When I was about ten my buddies and I would steal rabbits out of a preacher's rabbit cage. We'd play with them for a day or two, but feeding and watering them too. When we got bored with them, we'd take them back to the preacher's cage. I'm sure that poor man never figured out how his rabbits were always disappearing and re-appearing, because he never caught us in the act. You just might be getting your chicken back soon.

 

[Thundrr-Chicken]

Quote:
if you're looking for a good padlock solution... there is a company called "move n store" .. they are a vendor for the company i work for... they can sell you multiple numbers of locks... that all use the same key... i just bought 36 locks from them... all using the same key.. i have padlocks on my run, coop door, pop door and lots of nesting box locks... and i have rabbits too... so it was a huge help to me.. and i figure its about as predator proof as i could make those areas as well... and i live in a very urban area... so they'll keep the 2 legged predators away too...

 

[urbanfarmers]

Thanks everyone for letting me know what you think and how I might be able to deal with this. My husband doesn't want me to call the police because he thinks it's a lost cause because we have no proof. My point to him was this....

I know we can't prove anything but the cops need to know that things are being taken from our property, especially during broad daylight. If they have the nerve to steal a chicken during the day then they have the nerve to break into a house during the day. By letting the cops know someone trespassed and stole from us then they are more likely to believe the next person when they call and report something minor stolen and it could prevent more theft from us and others in the future.

Tala, like you said, it never hurts to create a paper trail and make them aware of what's going on in our area. We have lots of elderly that live around here and we could be protecting them in some small way by letting the cops know things are going on.

Joe, as for someone taking it to play with it. Well, I wouldn't be happy but I would be glad to get my chicken back. I'm glad you told me that little story so if that happens to me at least I will know that I'm not losing my mind and really do know how to count my chickens!

I will be adding the padlocks to the doors and window today and putting signs on my fences. Hopefully this will make people think twice about coming onto my property and stealing from me because I catch them in the act and all hell will break loose!

Thanks again everyone!!!